The heart contracts and relaxes with each heartbeat cycle. During contraction (systole), the heart ejects blood from two pumping chambers called ventricles. During relaxation (diastole), the ventricles of the heart refill with blood.
Not all of the blood is emptied from the ventricles of the heart during contraction or systole. End of systole (ES) refers to the volume of blood remaining in the ventricles immediately after systole and before the beginning of ventricular relaxation or diastole whereas ejection fraction refers to the percentage of blood which is pumped out of a filled ventricle during systole. End of diastole (ED) refers to the volume of blood remaining in the ventricles at the end of filling, i.e., when the ventricles refill with blood.
Some cardiac procedures involve a Left Ventricle Analysis (LVA) to analyze the ejection fraction, ED volume, ES volume, and other operating parameters of the heart. The analysis focuses on the left ventricle because it is the heart's main pumping element.
The LVA may be performed using angiography. To perform LVA using angiography, a user (e.g., cardiologist) must manually inspect every x-ray image frame of the angiography series in order to find the frames depicting ED and ES so that the ED and ES volumes can be ascertained. As may be expected, the manual inspection of every x-ray image frame of the angiography series is time consuming.
Accordingly, there is need for a system and method that reduces the time required to find ED and ES frames in an angiography series.